Cars and Drivers

Jeep US Sales Tumble 12% in December; FCA Sales Down 8% in 2017

courtesy of FCA US LLC

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles N.V. (NYSE: FCAU) reported December and full-year 2017 U.S. sales results Wednesday morning. For the full year, sales fell 8% compared with 2016, from 2.244 million to 2.059 million units.

Year over year, sales dropped 11% in December to 171,946 units. The Jeep brand posted a sales drop of 12% year over year as the Jeep Patriot showed a year-over-year sales decline of 97% and the Renegade posted a sales drop of 37%. Grand Cherokee sales rose 2%, Cherokee sales rose 18% and Compass sales increased by 10%.

Analysts at Kelley Blue Book (KBB) had projected December sales at 170,000 units, an 11.7% year-over-year decrease. KBB also estimated an average selling price of $37,446 for December, up 1.3% year over year and up 0.1% month over month.

FCA continues to implement a strategy of reducing sales to daily rental car companies. December fleet sales were down 42% year over year to 21,174 units.

The company’s Jeep brand sold a total of 73,205 units in December. The Jeep Wrangler sold 13,700 units in the month, while Grand Cherokee sales rose to 23,622 units.

Ram pickup sales decreased 7% in December to 49,876 units. Last year, Ram sold 53,597 pickups in the month.

Sales of the company’s Chrysler brand rose 3% as sales of the Chrysler 200 fell 87% year over year in November to 332. FCA continues to try to sell all dealer inventory on this discontinued model. Sales of the Chrysler 300 jumped 60% to 5,726 units. The new Pacifica minivan posted December sales of 11,144 units, up 8% for the month.

The company’s Dodge brand sales fell 23% year over year in December, as sales of every model declined. Dodge Caravan sales slipped 1% to 6,623 units in the month. The company’s Journey compact SUV saw sales drop by 57% year over year to 4,227 units sold in December.

Retail sales dipped 3% year over year in December and represented 88% of all unit sales. Alfa Romeo sales rose 3,812% in November, as sales of the new Giulia pushed the total to 2,034 for the month and 12,031 for the year to date.

FCA’s shares traded up about 1.3% Wednesday morning, at $18.68 in a 52-week range of $9.05 to $18.69. The high was posted this morning. The consensus price target on the stock is $23.36.

Take This Retirement Quiz To Get Matched With A Financial Advisor (Sponsored)

Take the quiz below to get matched with a financial advisor today.

Each advisor has been vetted by SmartAsset and is held to a fiduciary standard to act in your best interests.

Here’s how it works:
1. Answer SmartAsset advisor match quiz
2. Review your pre-screened matches at your leisure. Check out the
advisors’ profiles.
3. Speak with advisors at no cost to you. Have an introductory call on the phone or introduction in person and choose whom to work with in the future

Take the retirement quiz right here.

Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.